Graduate Admissions Recommendation Information

To the Evaluator

Under the 1974 Family Education Rights and Privacy Act, the applicant you are reviewing will have access to their recommendation unless he or she has waived that right.

The person is applying for admission to our School as a candidate for the degree of Master of Social Work. This involves not only an intensive program of graduate study, but commitment to a professional career of serious responsibility, as well. You have been selected by the applicant as someone who can be helpful to us in evaluating his or her qualifications and readiness to begin graduate study.

Strong intellectual ability and effective communication skills are vital qualifications. Equally important are a strong capacity for empathy and security of personality, as exemplified in good relationships with others. Emotional maturity and stability appropriate to the applicant’s age are essential. Motivation to enter the field of social work should include an awareness of social issues as well as a deep concern for people.

Although people continue to grow and mature, a person who enters a professional school of social work without a good degree of readiness in all these areas risks failure and, at best, is likely to have a difficult experience. Therefore, you can best help the applicant by being frank about his or her limitations as well as strengths.

We ask that you answer the questions below as fully as possible in a written letter–on official letterhead (if possible)–and complete the sections on the form.

1)      In what capacity and for how long have you known the applicant? If you have personal knowledge of any experience the applicant has had in the broad areas of social service, indicate the nature of this experience and your assessment of the applicant’s performance.

2)      What do you consider the applicant’s major strength(s) as a candidate for professional education in social work?

3)      In what areas, and to what degree, does the applicant need to be strengthened as a potential professional social worker?

Thank you very much for your assistance and for your prompt submission of these materials.

Instructions to Submit a Recommendation for Admission

Thank you for providing a recommendation for an applicant to the PhD Program in Social Work at Boston University.  Through the admissions review process, the Doctoral Committee looks forward to this opportunity to learn more about each applicant.  While the Doctoral Committee reviews applications holistically, letters of recommendation should speak specifically to an applicant’s intellectual ability, research experience and potential, and career aspirations in social work.

Please complete the online recommendation questionnaire and upload a letter of recommendation.  Letters of recommendation should be written in English and discuss the following:

1. Describe under what circumstances and the length of time you have known the applicant.

2. Discuss the applicant’s research ability and potential, including the applicant’s role and contribution to ongoing or completed research projects.

3. Comment on the applicant’s accomplishments, motivation and potential for achievement in a doctoral program and for long-term success in a research or academic career in social work or a related field.

4. Discuss the applicant’s maturity and readiness for doctoral education.

Thank you for submitting a recommendation on behalf of the applicant.  The Doctoral Committee appreciates your candor and analysis.  Should you have any questions, please contact sswphd@bu.edu.